Metabolic and Tsunderella
by BrokenShardsOfGlass
Summary: Ever since he was younger, Arthur always loved Alfred. Even if he would never admit it to himself. Their love is a forbidden romance, unnaccepted by society. Will Arthur admit his feelings before he drowns in his own denial? Will Alfred be able to get Arthur to admit his feelings? A tale of denial and romance. Rating may go up. Please R&R. Warning: USUK and Shounen Ai
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first story and I would appreciate constructive criticism. Thank you for reading and please R&R. Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya**

**POV: Arthur**

**Age: 12**

Arthur rushed through the crowd of people, his messy golden hair getting even messier. He _had _to get to the grocery store before it closed, or his mum would probably bite his head off. He cringed at the mental image of his frying pan wielding mother. Arthur had emerald green eyes and milky, pale skin. He was fairly short and of slender build. As Arthur saw the doors closing, he put on a burst of speed, his pale face turning a soft shade of pink due to exertion. The clear doors began sliding shut for the day and Arthur ran even faster.

Just when he was about to clear the doors, he slammed into a solid body that strangely smelled like hamburgers. Arthur looked up to see golden-blonde hair, and sky blue eyes met emerald green. The boy had the most pretty eyes Arthur had ever seen. They reminded him of the deep blue ocean you could get lost in and the clear blue sky. His blonde hair looked like wheat fields in the warm summer sun, with a single strand standing up. Two shades of blue mixed and created a color that held Arthur's gaze.

"Err...sorry for running into you." Arthur mumbled sheepishly before remembering why he had been rushing. He looked up in despair to see a single CLOSED sign had been placed in the window of the grocery store. _Oh, great. Mum's going to kill me. _Arthur was so lost in thought that he didn't see the outstretched hand. "Hiya! My name's Alfred. Alfred F. Jones. Nice to meet 'cha! What's your name?" Arthur muttered a quiet hello and said "My name is Arthur Kirkland, it's a pleasure to meet you as well." Alfred flashed a cheeky grin and said "So, Artie, where were you runnin' to so fast?" Spluttering, Arthur replied with an angry blush "My name is _Arthur_, not Artie! And I had to get to the market to buy some tea for my mum, but the store closed and...oh, bollocks, the store's closed! My mum will kill me!"

"Whoever your mom is, she can't be as bad as the kid's mom who lives next to me. I just moved in today and I saw him running out earlier. His mom was carrying a _frying pan_! He looked kinda girly too. He was really skinny, kinda like you, Artie!" Ignoring the fact that Alfred had called him 'Artie' and girly, he hesitantly asked "...um, where do you live?" "Fallen for me already?," Alfred grinned. Blushing, Arthur frantically shook his head. "Just tell me where you live, bloody git!" "Well, I used to live in America, but my family just moved to England. I live at 4761 E. Knoll Street. Where do you live Artie?"

Once again ignoring the nickname, Arthur replied with a slightly horror tinged voice "I live right next to you. Y-you were the family that just recently moved into the house right next to mine." Alfred beamed, his face lighting up like the summer sun. His eyes were shining with childlike enthusiasm and he practically radiated excitement. "We're gonna be best friends, Artie! 'Cause I'm the hero, and the hero always makes friends! How old are you, Artie?" "My name is _Arthur_, you git" Arthur corrected, and I'm 12 years old."

"Cool! I'm 10 and I'm turning 11, soon! Do you wanna come over sometime? I just moved here, so I don't know many people yet... Hey! That makes you my first friend here! We're gonna be best friends forever, and that's a promise! A hero always keeps his promises, so let's pinkie swear!" Alfred outstretched a small slightly chubby pinkie, looking at Arthur expectantly. Slowly, Arthur outstretched his hand as well. Quietly, he said "I've never had a best friend before. I don't have many friends at all, so...so you better keep your promise! N-not that I care or anything! I just don't like it when people break promises."

"Okay then, Arthur! As a hero, I swear that we will be best friends forever!" Arthur and Alfred entwined their fingers and smiled happily at their new friend. "I have to go now Alfred, it's getting late and I don't want my mum to be worried. She may be scary sometimes, but she cares." "I'll come with you." Alfred chirped, "I should be getting home too, and we're neighbors, 'member?" Alfred and Arthur both began to walk back to their homes, chattering happily on the way there. Arthur learned that: Alfred was obsessed with superheroes and hoped to be one when he grew up. His favorite food was hamburgers, and his favorite drink was soda. His favorite restaurant was McDonald's, and that he was extremely patriotic. He didn't really like school, but was pretty sharp and could focus if he wanted to. And that he had a step-brother, a Canadian named Matthew Williams.

Arthur was smiling brightly. Who knew that an accidental run-in would result in a friend? In the end, he decided that it was worth coming home to an enraged mother since he became friends with such a happy and enthusiastic boy. Once he arrived home, his mother scooped him up in a tight hug, asking where he'd been for so long. Arthur told her the truth: that when he got to the grocery store, it was closed. Excitedly, he told her about the new friend he had made next door.

His mother had decided not to punish him after all, and accepted that he couldn't do anything about the store closing. That night, Arthur dreamed of the adventures he would go on with his new friend.

**A/N: I apologize for any grammatical errors! Please leave a review and inform me of any mistakes. I would hate for any incorrect grammar to ruin a story. This is my first story and I plan on continuing it. No flames please. Thank you for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I've decided that this will be a fairly long story. Since this is my first story, I would greatly appreciate constructive criticism. Please R&R! Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya.**

**POV: Arthur**

**Age: 12**

** "**_Arthur. Arthur! ARTHUR! Wake up!"_ Arthur nearly fell off the bed as he was awoken by his mother yelling at him from downstairs. He didn't have school, did he? He was supposed to be on summer vacation. Arthur rubbed at his bleary eyes, still hazy with sleep. _Why would mum wake me up so early? She usually lets me sleep in during summer vacation._

He stumbled down the stairs, trying not to tumble down the stairs and fall face first on the ground. On the way back to his house yesterday, Alfred had told him about the time he landed on his face, but broke his foot, instead. Smiling at the story, Arthur shook his head in exasperation.

_"Yeah, my dad just bought Matthew and me some ice cream, so I was super excited." Alfred's sky blue eyes were shining as he told Arthur the story, and he found himself mesmerized. "And I was running really fast, 'cause I didn't want the ice cream to melt, but I was running too fast and tripped on Mattie's polar bear. So~, I fell and landed on my face. Dad sent me to the hospital and they told me that I broke my foot. I still got ice cream, though, 'cause I'm a hero!"_

Arthur was amazed. Leave it to the git to manage to break his foot for ice cream. _How does one break their foot if they landed on their face?_ Arthur wondered. _"Arthur, are you awake yet?"_

"I'm coming, Mum! I'll be there in a minute!"

"You have a visitor, poppet! He says his name is Alfred. Isn't he the one you were telling me about last night? Oh, he's adorable!"

Arthur peeked out from behind his mother to look out the door. Alfred stood there, looking excited and grinning like there was no tomorrow. "Artie! Wanna come out and play today? We could go to the park nearby!" Arthur looked up at his mother, a questioning look on his face.

"Go on, Arthur, go play with your friend. Make sure to be home by 7."

Arthur smiled happily and ran upstairs to get dressed. He threw on a forest green t-shirt that matched his eyes, and a pair of jeans. Thoughts ran through Arthur's mind. What would they do today? What adventures could they go on?

He ran down the stairs, grinning. Waving goodbye to his mother, Arthur sped out the door. As soon as he was outside, he was tackled in a bear hug. "Artie! I missed you sooo much!"

"Let go, you git! I saw you yesterday, how could you possibly miss me in that time?! And my name is _Arthur!_"

Alfred completely ignored the last part. "Yesterday was a long time ago, Artie. We should go to the park. Then we can play games and stuff!" "Fine, let's go." Arthur grumbled. Arthur and Alfred walked to the park, Arthur admiring the cool breeze, and Alfred rambling on about aliens, burgers, and scary movies.

At last, they got to the park. Alfred plopped down on the dew covered grass hill and motioned for Arthur to sit next to him. "Hey, Arthur, you wanna play truth or dare?" Alfred asked. "Sure, why not?" Arthur responded. "'Kay then, truth or dare, Arthur?" "Hmm...truth." "Aw, you're no fun," Alfred mumbled, "fine, what is your most embarrassing memory?" Alfred watched as Arthur's pale face turned an alarming and unnatural shade of red. "Um...well, you better not tell anyone this, you wanker! I...uni...min..nny." "Huh? You're gonna have to speak louder, Artie, I can't hear you." Sighing, Arthur told him about his imaginary friends.

"When I was 8, I had imaginary friends, lots of them." Ignoring Alfred's badly concealed snickers, he continued. "There was Uni, the unicorn. Flying Mint Bunny, the...well flying green bunny. Captain Hook, who's a pirate. And Tinker Bell, the fairy. I was the only one who could see them, but I didn't know that at the time. I would talk to them all day: at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. My mum thought I was either delusional, or on drugs, and I was nearly sent to an insane asylum. The therapist didn't think it was very normal when I tried to introduce him to Flying Mint Bunny."

"There, are you happy, now? I had no friends, so I was friends with imaginary creatures no one else could see!" Blushing, Arthur tried to hide his red face in his silky, golden hair. He sat there for a moment, waiting for the ridicule. It never came. What did come was an unexpected hug. Surprised, Arthur looked up to see Alfred hugging him. "Don't worry, Artie, I'll be your friend now and forever! I promised, and heroes keep their promises. You don't need imaginary friends anymore because I'll be your real friend forever and ever!"

Arthur felt something warm in the pit of his stomach. The feeling spread throughout his entire body, making him feel appreciated and safe. The determination in those bright blue eyes were genuine, and Arthur almost wanted to cry. Never in his life has someone cared enough to promise to be by his side forever. Oh, he knew his parents loved him unconditionally, but that was different. Alfred would stay by him of his own accord, of his own will.

"Th-thank you." Arthur mumbled.

"It's your turn now."

"Fine. Alfred, truth or dare?"

"I choose dare, 'cause I'm the hero!"

"What does being a hero have to do wit-never mind. I dare you to um...ding-dong ditch that house over there!"

Arthur pointed to a relatively normal looking house. There was a small garden out front and a car in the driveway. "Okay, wait here, Arthur!" Alfred got up and sprinted over to the house, his short legs occasionally stumbling. Alfred jabbed the doorbell and quickly ran to hide in a bush. Arthur struggled to contain his laughter as he watched Alfred's cowlick stick up from the bush, making it obvious where he was hiding. The person who answered the door was a portly man. His legs were short and chubby and he had a beer belly. In his hand he held an empty beer bottle. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he had a hangover. His greasy face had a sour look and he looked like someone who would beat small children and kick puppies.

Suddenly, Arthur was scared for Alfred. What if he got caught? Arthur could tell that the fat man was someone who wouldn't think twice about hitting a child. The man who opened the door began making his way towards the bushes Alfred was hiding in, holding a beer bottle above his head. Without thinking, Arthur rushed in front of Alfred as the man threw the glass bottle. _Crash!_ Sneering, the man walked, more like waddled, his way back inside his home, slamming the door with a loud _thud!_

The bottle hit his head and black spots began appearing. Instead of regret, Arthur was thankful that he had gotten there in time. _It was my fault, I was the one who dared him to do it. It's only right that I take the punishment. _Then everything went black.

**Thank you to all those who read the second chapter. My personal goal is to write at least 1,000 words per chapter. This story will be continuing, he's not dead. I just needed something to show how far Arthur would go for Alfred. This isn't a major point in the story, it's a show of loyalty. This is my first story, so constructive criticism is appreciated. No flames please! I'm writing their childhood as I go, their adulthood is more or less planned out, so if you have any ideas on how their childhood should progress, please PM me. Reviews are appreciated.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own none of the characters used. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya. This is my first story, so constructive criticism and corrections are appreciated.**

**POV: Alfred**

**Age: 10**

_Hehehe, this is awesome. That fat old guy will never find me! I'm too heroic for that! _Alfred snickered from his hiding spot in the bushes, completely unaware that his ahoge was sticking out of his hiding spot. _It's actually pretty cool in here._ Alfred thought as he admired the view of sunlight filtering through the dark leaves. The dew drops seemed to sparkle when they were hit by the sun's rays.

Alfred was so occupied with the view, he didn't hear the heavy footsteps slowly making its way towards his hiding spot.

_Thud._

_Thud._

_Thud._

_I wonder if the guy is gone yet? Isn't Artie supposed to tell me when to come out? _Caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice the dark shadow getting closer and closer.

_Thud._

_Thud._

The sudden noise of shattering glass shook Alfred out of his reverie. He heard the sound of something falling and the slam of the door. _Huh, I wonder why Arthur hasn't told me to come out yet. The guy already went inside. _With a strange foreboding feeling, Alfred peeked out from the bushes. Rich crimson was the first thing he saw. Alfred's eyes widened in horror and shock as he saw Arthur's bleeding arms and face.

_The shattering noise must've been glass. What _happened?_ Did Arthur get hit in the head? He's not responding._ Bright and vivid emeralds were hidden under fluttering golden lashes. "A-Artie? Arthur? Are you okay? Say something! _Arthur!_" Alfred was panicking. He didn't know what to do in the situation and there were no adults around.

"Arthur, this isn't funny! Get up! _Arthur get WAKE UP!_" Alfred was desperate now and he did something he never wanted to do. He had to abandon Arthur to get help. There was no other way. Neither of them had phones and the injuries could be serious. Whispering a quiet_ "Sorry, Arthur,"_ Alfred took off. Fueled by desperation, Alfred sprinted back home. The beautiful scenery was ignored and became a blur to him.

The moment he got home, Alfred slammed the door open. He heard a crash and knew that there would be a hole in the wall later.

"Alfred, you're home early," his mother said, slightly surprised.

"Mom, you have to help! Call an ambulance or something! ArthurgothurtandIdontknowwha ttodoandyoureallyhavetohelp! [Arthur got hurt and I don't know what to do and you really need to help!]

Nodding, Mrs. Jones got out her phone and dialed for an ambulance. "Now, Alfred, I need you to calm down and tell me where this happened." On the verge of a breakdown, Alfred managed to gasp out that he was at the park.

After telling the people on the other line, Mrs. Jones leaned down to face her son. "Now tell me what happened Alfred." Nodding, Alfred started his story:

"Well, me and Arthur* were playing truth or dare. He dared me to go ding-dong ditch someone's house, and I did. After that, I ran to hide in the bushes. I don't know how he found me, but he did!" Looking at her son's stubborn lock of hair, Mrs. Jones knew immediately what had happened."Then I don't know what happened. He threw something at Arthur and then Artie stated bleeding! He wouldn't wake up either. Is he gonna be alright, Mom?"

"How about we go to the hospital and see how he's doing? You can bring some toys to help cheer him up." Hearing that he could visit Arthur, Alfred lit up. He ran to his room to stuff his favorite toys into a bag.

"I hope he's okay," Alfred mumbled. _What _happened?_ Arthur wasn't supposed to be there, he was supposed to be waiting for me in the field. I'll just ask him when I get to the hospital._ Running out to the car, he could see Arthur's parents get in their car, too. The hospital must've called them, Alfred decided.

When they arrived at the hospital, they noticed the doctors and nurses in a frantic scramble. "What's going on?" Mrs. Jones asked a nearby doctor.

"The hospital seems to have run out of type O+ blood, and the Kirkland boy is suffering from blood loss. The glass cut much deeper than any of us thought."

Tugging at the hem of his mother's shirt, Alfred asked in a small voice, "Mom, don't I have type O+ blood? I can give some to Artie, and he'll get better, right?"

"Alfred, giving blood is dangerous."

"But Moooom! I'm the hero! I'm supposed to help people and Arthur is my bestest friend. I _have _to help him. Please, Mom?" Seeing the desperation in her son's watery blue eyes, Mrs. Jones gave in. "Alright! I'm gonna be a hero and help Artie!" With a triumphant fist pump, Alfred followed the nurse. She was pretty young and extremely peppy. She almost seemed fake, with her plastic smile and annoyingly high pitched voice.

"W-wait...is that a needle?"

Like any other normal 10 year old, he hated needles. Eying the sharp implement, Alfred felt fear bubble up in him. _It's so sharp and scary! What if they poke me wrong? I could die! If I die, who's gonna be the hero?! Can you eat hamburgers in heaven? _Lost in his (getting off track) thoughts, Alfred didn't notice the needle getting closer. Looking up, all he saw was a nurse holding a very long and sharp needle. Instinctively, his leg shot out and nailed her in the face. _Uh oh. _Wiping her (now bleeding) nose, she glared at him. _Scary~_

Putting on his most confident face, Alfred stuck out his arm. His eyes were wide with fear, but full of determination. Nodding, the nurse slowly put the needle in his arm.

Out in the waiting room, Alfred's mom could hear furniture being broken. There was a loud crash that sounded like a chair, and another one that sounded like an IV being knocked over. After a few seconds she could hear screaming.

"_Get away from me! You're scary! That huuurts..." _

"_OW! Do your _parents _know you throw chairs at people? __Hey! That machine is important!"_

Giggling, Mrs. Jones turned back to her magazine. When a doctor looked at her questioningly, she simply said, "I did say that giving blood is dangerous. Not so much to him as to other people."

_**ONE HOUR LATER:**_

Alfred came out of the room, followed by the nurse. Alfred was smiling a radiant smile and was all but skipping. The nurse, on the other hand, had tiny scratches on her arms and face, a bleeding nose, a forming black eye, and was carrying a broken chair and an IV.

Holding a lollipop in his hands, Alfred ran up to his mother.

"Mom, look! I did it!"

"You were very brave, sweetheart." Mrs. Jones responded.

"Mom, can we go visit Arthur now?"

"Sure," Mrs. Jones quickly said before asking a doctor "Excuse me sir, do you know what room Arthur Kirkland is in?"

The doctor looked at his map and briskly said, "He's in room 604, ma'am, have a nice day."

The second Alfred heard what room Arthur was in, he took off down the hall, ignoring the yelling coming from the employees. He sped down the hall, and slammed the door open, bursting into the room.

"Artie, are you okay? Are you better now?! I helped them save you 'cause I'm a hero!"

Arthur was lying in bed, sleeping, when Alfred charged in, and he was out cold. Reading Harry Potter all night will do that to a person.

Seeing that his friend was still not opening his eyes, Alfred panicked._ Oh my gosh, what if they didn't get the blood in time? What if he's DEAD?! Please don't die, Artie!_ As a last resort, Alfred pulled a hamburger out of god knows where and placed it on Arthur's head. _This _ has _to help him feel better! Hamburgers make _everyone _feel better!_ With a heroic face, Alfred sat down next to the bed to wait for the hamburger to work its magic.

**A/N: Please review! Constructive criticism is appreciated. This is my first story, so no flames please! I've already decided that this is going to be a long story that builds up and I promise that the title isn't just there for show. Eventually, this will become based off of the song "Metabolic and Tsunderella," which can be found on YouTube, I wouldn't recommend that video to anyone who doesn't like yaoi. I want to take my time on my first story and make it a good one. Please review!**

***I am well aware that this is incorrect grammar, however, I am trying to make this story realistic and they are still young. Alfred (at this age) would probably not be using correcct grammar.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in the story. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya.**

**POV: Arthur**

**Age: 12**

_What is on my head?_

That was Arthur's first thought as he was roused from his sleep by loud yelling. The smell of meat, cheese, and grease invaded his nostrils. _Ughh...what is that smell? I think I just shortened my life span __by 10 years, just by smelling that.._

Blindly reaching up with his hand, Arthur grabbed the foreign object on his forehead. His fingers sinking into the meat, lettuce, and cheese, he felt sauce squelching around his fingers. Ripping the hamburger off his head in disgust, Arthur heard it fall on the floor.

_Plop._

Peering out from under golden lashes, Arthur caught a glimpse of Alfred's face looming over his, with a worried, waiting look. Sitting up, Arthur felt a bandage wrapped around his head, spots of blood seeping through. Shutting his eyes to block out the sunlight filtering through the blinds, Arthur could hear Alfred's excited shouting.

"Artie! I was so worried! What happened? Why'd the guy throw a bottle at you? Are you okay? And-"

"Alfred, you git, I can't answer all those questions at once! Slow down!" Letting out a sigh, Arthur readied himself to retell the story.

"_I was waiting for you in the field when you ding-dong ditched the man's house. When he opened the door, he looked incapable of judgment. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was swaying back and forth with an empty beer bottle in his hands. In that state of mind, he wouldn't have cared if he injured any children."_ Gesturing to Alfred's ahoge, Arthur continued, _"You were hiding in the bushes, but that piece of your hair stuck up, showing him exactly where you were. It was my fault you were there in the first place, so I _had_ to do something. I figured that since it was my stupid dare that got you into the situation, that it would be fitting to take the punishment myself."_

"I ran in front of your hiding place when he threw the bottle at you, then I don't remember anything except waking up here." Choosing to omit the part where he hadn't had any second thoughts, Arthur flushed a deep red. "B-but don't think that I did it because I was worried about you, or a-anything! I

j-just didn't want to feel guilty! Don't g-get any strange thoughts!"

Stumbling over his words, Arthur cursed himself for sounding so weak. _I don't care about the idiot! I don't! __But why do I feel so warm inside? _

Proudly displaying his bandaged wrist, Alfred exclaimed, "I helped you get better, Artie! I let them take some blood from me to give to you, 'cause they were out of your type of blood here, and we have the same blood type. And I brought some toys with me to help cheer you up!"

As if on cue, Alfred's mother walked in, an overstuffed backpack in her hands and a warm smile on her face. "Alfred, dear, we do not run in a hospital. Some of the patients were a little startled when you ran down the halls."

Handing Alfred the backpack, Mrs. Jones smiled at the two boys and said she had some things to talk about with Mrs. Kirkland. Smiling a little too happily, she walked out of the room.

Grabbing his backpack, Alfred pulled out an assortment of things. Comics, crayons, colored pencils, coloring books, Legos, action figures, and more were pulled out of his seemingly bottomless backpack. Soon, there was a wide array of toys and various forms of entertainment scattered across the bed.

Arthur looked over curiously as he saw Alfred pull something gray out of his backpack. Putting it on the bed, Alfred said, "This is Tony. He's an alien and he's my best friend, after you, of course!" Smiling happily, Alfred pulled out a stuffed unicorn. "And here's a present to help you get better! This way, everyone can see him and you won't be made fun of anymore."

With a soft smile, Arthur gingerly took the plush unicorn, running his hand over the silky fur. "T-thank you," he mumbled.

Alfred opened his mouth to say something else, but at that moment, the door opened, and a smiling doctor walked in.

"Good news, Arthur. You should be fine, none of the injuries seem too serious. You should be released by tonight." The doctor promptly began straightening the room, seeing as when Alfred burst in, he had knocked over a chair, along with several desks.

"You hear that, Arthur? You can leave pretty soon, and that's awesome, 'cause there's a fair in town this week and Mom said I can go alone this year. We should go together, and this time, I promise I'll protect you! And a hero always keeps his promises."

Mutely nodding, Arthur wondered, _Promise he'll protect me _this_ time? What does he mean by that?_ Just as Arthur opened his mouth to speak, the door slammed open.

"Oh, poppet! Are you okay? I was so worried!"

Rushing to her son, Mrs. Kirkland embraced Arthur in a near strangulating hug. Following her, Mr. Kirkland walked into the room, along with Mrs. Jones.

"After a little convincing, your mother managed to get the hospital to let you out early, we can leave now."

Although his face was emotionless, his tone was warm and affectionate. Swinging out of bed, Arthur reached for his stuffed unicorn, hugging it to his chest. Walking next to Alfred, he could hear his and Alfred's mother saying something along the lines of _"We'll go to his house tonight." "I can still whack him in the head with a frying pan, right?" "Go ahead, the ass hat deserves it." _And more violent and vengeful ideas.

Shuddering, Arthur almost, _almost _felt bad for the man, but then he remembered how eager the man was to hurt Alfred, and silently cheered his mother on.

_In the 2nd grade, some of the older kids in 5th or 6th grade teased and bullied Arthur. Every day, he would come home crying, his face blotchy and red, eyes puffy and swollen, streams of tears falling from his emerald eyes. Running up to his room and slamming the door after a particularly bad day, Arthur sobbed into his covers. There was a soft click as the door to his room opened, his mother was home early today. Normally, he'd have reassured her and insist nothing was wrong, but today, he cracked._

_Blubbering, he cried into his mother's dress, telling her what happened in school. Nodding understandingly, his mother had stroked his hair, murmuring words of comfort._

_The next day, the boys who were bullying him didn't show up at school. They didn't show up the next day either, or the day after that._

_After around 2 weeks, they showed up at school, but for some reason, they were always nervous and extremely kind to Arthur. Assuming his mom had talked to their parents, he shrugged it off. Until, he saw his mom buy a new frying pan because her old one got dented when she "dropped it on the floor."_

_He soon learned that his tormentors almost had to move away after their houses had been mysteriously turned into rubble the night he told his mother what happened..._

Outside of the hospital, Arthur asked if he could go to the fair with Alfred on Saturday. After a moment of deliberation, she finally gave her consent. Running to the car, Arthur waved goodbye to Alfred, who waved back manically. In the car, Arthur snuggled the stuffed unicorn and buried his face in the plush fur, quickly falling asleep.

**A/N: Sorry if this chapter seemed rushed. I just wanted to get out an update as soon as possible and writer's block sucks... Also, I'm not an expert in any of this, I don't know how hospital procedures work. I also needed to set the scene for the next chapter. They're going to an amusement park! Reviews are appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya.**

**POV: Alfred**

**Age: 10**

Alfred sat in the living room of Arthur's house, on the couch, practically shivering with excitement. _We're gonna go to the amusement park today! And we're gonna go on all the rides and we're gonna eat a bunch of junk food!_

After waiting for a total of 10 minutes, Alfred began to get impatient. Fidgeting in the cushions, he stared blankly at the fan, following one blade around and around. After 5 minutes of that, Alfred decided that he would go wake Arthur up himself. _The day's already starting, and Artie's still sleeping. We're wasting our whole day!"_

Rushing up the stairs two steps at a time, Alfred was in front of Arthur's room in no time. Snickering, he cracked open the door and peered into the room. Considering the fact that he was a 12 year old boy, his room was relatively neat. There was a pile of neatly folded laundry on a chair, and a tidy bookcase in the corner of the room. The wall was blue and adorned with carefully placed red and white lines to form the Union Jack. The curtains were pulled shut, blocking out any sunlight and Arthur was sprawled out on the bed, his hair splayed out over his face. His normally scowling face was calm and peaceful, his breathing slow and even.

Smirking mischievously, Alfred tiptoed over to the edge of the bed. Eventually, he was so close that he could see Arthur's delicate eyelids fluttering, his chest rising and falling, and each strand of his fair hair.

_He looks kinda pretty like this...Wait, what am I saying? He's a boy! Boys aren't meant to be _pretty. Shaking off the thought, Alfred focused on the task at hand. Creeping over to the bed, Alfred suddenly pounced into the covers.

Startled, Arthur fell out of bed with a loud exclamation of 'Wanker*!', narrowly missing hitting Alfred in the face with his flailing arms.

Eyes filled with mirth, Alfred let out a long, hearty laugh, tears streaming down his face. "Y-your face! I-I can't...haha...breathe...ha...hahaha!" Rolling on the floor, Alfred was nearly choking.

Arthur's face was bright red, showing how embarrassed he was.

"You git! What the bloody hell was that for?! You could have given me a heart attack! Bloody tosser! I was sleeping! Why in the world would you wake me up at 7:00 AM?!"

Like it was the simplest thing in the world, Alfred just said, "We're going to the amusement park today, if you don't wake up early, we'll waste the whole day waiting for you to get up."

Groaning, Arthur tried to rub the sleep out of his eyes. "Alfred, it's 7 in the morning, and I just got released from the hospital, was this necessary? How did you get in, anyway?"

"The hero always finds a spare, hidden key! You sound so old, Artie, since you're already up, let's gooo...let's go~"

"Then get out of my room, idiot! I need to change!"

Smiling giddily, Alfred all but skipped out of the room.

_Hahaha, mission successful! The hero has triumphed over the evil "sleep" once again! _Preoccupied with these thoughts, Alfred didn't notice Arthur trudging down the stairs, grumbling about being woken up early.

"Alright, git, let's go."

Hopping off the couch, Alfred grabbed Arthur's hand and ran out the door. The day was hot and the sun beat down on them. Shading his eyes from the sun, Alfred ran down a street, dragging Arthur behind him.

**ONE HOUR OF RUNNING LATER~**

"S-slow down, I can't keep up with you. You have way too much energy for this early in the morning..." Arthur panted, sweat running down his pink-tinged face.

"We're almost there, old man," Alfred smirked teasingly. "Ah, look, there's the entrance to the amusement park!"

Strolling up to the entrance, Alfred purchased two tickets, and dragged Arthur into the park. "Ohmigosh! Look, a roller coaster! Let's go on that! Come on, come on~"

"Alright, fine, we'll go on the roller coaster."

As the roller coaster began going up its steep incline, Alfred noticed Arthur begin to shake next to him. _I wonder if he's afraid of heights. _After finally reaching the top, the roller coaster began its journey down. Alfred could practically feel his organs shift as gravity came into effect and pulled the car down. The wind whooshed through his hair and he could feel his body being pulled backwards by the opposing forces.

After a sharp turn, he could see loops head. With an excited cry, Alfred felt the car begin to turn and twist to correspond with the swirls. In his excitement, he didn't feel his glasses begin to slip off his face. As they were upside-down, the glasses fell clear off his face and began its descent down to the dirt below. The roller coaster was going so fast that the strong wind forced him to shut his eyes.

"Alfred, your glasses!" Arthur yelled, his knuckles white from his tight grip on the seat.

"What? I can't hear you! The roller coaster's too loud!"

Opening his eyes, Alfred noticed that everything was blurrier than before and that his face was lighter. Suddenly feeling queasy, Alfred panicked. "Dude! My mom's gonna kill me! You gotta help me find them when we get down!"

The tracks made another loop, and another, and another. Finally, the ride ended and the two boys stumbled off, one looking nauseous, and the other panicked. "Arthur, you have to help me find Texas, if I don't, my parents are going to kill me!"

Curious, Arthur asked "You call your glasses 'Texas'?"

Freaking out, Alfred quickly spluttered out an incomprehensible string of words to explain, then just grabbed Arthur by his hand and dragged him back to the roller coaster. Walking up to the bored looking employee, Alfred desperately asked "Can we please go in? I lost my glasses while we were on the loops and they're somewhere on the ground, now. Can we please, please just run in and look for them?"

The girl working at the booth just smacked her gum and sneered, "Look, kid, we're not allowed to let anyone in there. We can't stop the roller coaster just so you can get your glasses. Maybe if you'd been more responsible, you wouldn't have lost them."

Turning back to the counter, she twirled a strand of long blonde hair around her fingers and flipped a page in her magazine, signaling that the conversation was over.

Discouraged, Alfred turned back to Arthur to tell him that there was no way they could go in to retrieve his glasses. However, when he turned around, he saw a determined spark in Arthur's viridian eyes.

_I wonder what he's thinking..._

Grabbing Alfred's shirtsleeve, Arthur dragged him off. Once they were out of earshot of the employee, Arthur began ranting. "That bloody bint*! '_Oh, _we can't stop the roller coaster because I'm too busy drooling over a magazine!' We're getting your glasses, Alfred, I don't care if that slag* says no!"

Fuming, Arthur marched off into a crowd of people, leaving Alfred dumbfounded.

_What's he doing?_

Ten minutes later, Arthur came back with a stack of magazines, a soccer ball, several ice creams, a BB gun, and a bag of popcorn.

Raising a questioning eyebrow, Alfred gestured to the objects in Arthur's arm, wondering where he got everything in ten minutes and at a _fair, _no less.

Arthur just waved his hands in a placating motion and placed the stack of magazines on the ground in front of the booth while the girl was busy deciding what color lip gloss she wanted to use.

Next to the magazines, he placed the ice cream and then proceeded to place the popcorn bag on top of the booth. Crouching down, he knocked on the side of the booth, then scampered away.

Squinting his eyes to help focus the blurry image, Alfred saw the girl lethargically look down at the pile. Her eyes lit up when she saw the ice cream and even more so when she saw the magazines.

Reaching down, she first picked up the magazines, then the ice cream. As she was picking up the ice cream, Arthur promptly kicked the soccer ball at her hands, splattering ice cream on her bright pink shirt. After hearing a high pitched shriek, Arthur shot the BB gun at the popcorn bag on top of the booth, showering her in popcorn.

Screaming, she frantically wiped at her shirt, but when she noticed that it wasn't coming off, she gave a frustrated shriek. Looking left and right to make sure none of the other employees saw her, she rushed off to the bathroom to try to remove the sticky substance.

As soon as she was gone, Arthur quickly motioned for Alfred to jump over the short fence that was meant to prevent people from entering.

During all of this, Alfred was awestruck as he saw how "ungentlemanly" his friend could be. Shaking his head in wonder, Alfred hopped over the fence, followed by Arthur.

"Alright, I'd say we have around 15-20 minutes before she gets all that off, let's hurry," Arthur said, beginning to look around.

After around 20 minutes of scrabbling in the dirt, Alfred triumphantly held up his glasses. Shoving them on his face, he could see the girl approaching from the distance, and boy did she look angry.

"A-Artie, we should run, like, _now._"

Paling at the sight of the fuming and obviously agitated girl, the two boys jumped over the fence and ran into a crowd, in hopes of blending in. After calming down, they looked at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing.

"D-dude! That was awesome! Didja see her face? Hahaha! I thought you were supposed to be mature and a gentleman."

"Well, certain circumstances call for certain action. Besides, it's not like I did it for _you_ or anything, I just didn't want to hear your whining for the rest of the day."

Just in case she found them, Alfred and Arthur stayed in the crowd of people, going around and playing games.

After successfully knocking down 5 bottles, Alfred chose a pirate hat as his prize, then placed it on Arthur's already messy hair. The hat flopped over his face, obscuring his blush.

As if not wanting to be outdone, Arthur won a prize at a shooting game and chose a cowboy hat for Alfred.

Thus, the two had a competition on who could give the other the most prizes.

After hours of playing games and going on various rides, the sun began to set. "Hey Artie, you wanna go on the Ferris Wheel?" Alfred inquired.

"Sure, as long as I don't have to look down," Arthur responded.

Soon, the duo was in a car and slowly moving upwards. Alfred felt heat rise to his cheeks as Arthur subconsciously clung to his arm. Upset at seeing his friend so distressed, Alfred pulled Arthur into a hug.

He heard Arthur mumble a quiet and shaky thank you and hugged him tighter.

After sitting in silence for awhile, Alfred asked, "Arthur, what're the people in the other cars doing?"

Peeking his head out, Arthur stated, "They're kissing. My mum told me that it's what people do when they really like each other. I see my parents kissing all the time."

"Well, I really like you...do you wanna try it?"

"O-okay..."

"Have you ever kissed anyone before?" Alfred inquired.

Arthur replied with "No, I haven't liked anyone enough to do it. B-but that doesn't mean your special or a-anything.''

For some strange reason, Alfred felt happy that he was the first person Arthur would kiss.

"I haven't kissed anyone either, so that means you're the first person I'll ever kiss!" Alfred exclaimed.

_Why is my stomach feeling so weird? It must be all those burgers I ate..._

They stared at each other and Alfred could see Arthur fidgeting. Moving in, their lips met in a chaste kiss and Alfred could feel something warm and fuzzy in the pit of his stomach.

_Must be the burgers._

When they pulled away, both of their faces were red, but they were smiling.

When the Ferris Wheel rocked, Arthur clung to Alfred and the latter hugged him tightly. And unbeknownst to them, something was blossoming.

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long with the update! One wrong block in karate and your finger's dislocated... Also, sorry if it was cheesy, I'm feeling sappy for some reason. Because I didn't update very quickly, I tried making this chapter longer than the others. This is my first story, so constructive criticism is appreciated, just please no flames. And to 15gummybears, thank you for the positive reviews, it makes me feel more motivated. This story is going to be pretty long. Starting out when they're children in elementary ****school, to**** middle school, to high school, ****and then**** adulthood.** **Their adulthood is probably going to be the longest since that's where everything is the MOST complicated. Reviews are very much appreciated!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned. Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya.**

**POV: Arthur**

**Age: 12**

Sunlight filtered through the sloppily shut curtains and allowed light to peek through the cracks. The sun illuminated the room enough to reveal a small, slender body entangled within the white sheets, breathing softly. Cracking open his emerald eyes, Arthur saw that he was almost completely buried in stuffed animals. Arthur failed at holding back a smile at remembering their ridiculous competition the day before, when they both ran from game to game, trying to win the other more prizes.

On the wall, there were photo booth strips of him and Alfred in various positions. One was of him and Alfred dressed as girls (courtesy of the costume box in the corner of the booth). Arthur had on a long blonde wig, which he had tied into pigtails with a satin ribbon. The long bangs covered his bushy eyebrows and he had on a cerulean dress, which Alfred literally had to _force _on him. The silky dress went down to his knees and was draped with a frilly white apron, which wasn't removable, unfortunately. He also had on ebony knee socks and a pair of dainty shoes adorned his feet. In a futile attempt to make himself unrecognizable, he also donned a pair of red rimmed glasses.

On the other hand, Alfred had on a wavy, shoulder-length blonde wig, the bangs held up by red, white, and blue clips. He thought it would be funny if he shoved two rubber balls in his shirt to make it look like he had breasts. Then he decided to go all out and put on a bikini top (decorated like an American flag of course), and a pair of frayed denim booty shorts. Unable to part with his precious bomber's jacket, Alfred wore it over the bikini top. Due to his young age, Alfred somehow managed to look like a girl.

In another photo, he and Alfred were dressed as an angel and a devil. He had on a flimsy pure white toga, which came mid-thigh and barely covered anything, along with a hastily thrown on halo, resting on his unruly hair. Alfred had on a "negative" bombers jacket, which was black and gray instead of its usual brown and white. Fake bat wings were attached onto the back of the bombers jacket, and a pair of fake glistening fangs completed the look. The lighting was altered, and as a result, Alfred's hair looked pitch black. His electric blue eyes stood out all the more from the grim outfit, standing out from the monochromatic shades.

With a soft smile, Arthur set the pictures down and laid back on the bed, sinking down in the puffy blankets. He lazily watched dust motes float around, slowly following them with his eyes. It was almost like living in a dream, every day was a new adventure, every moment was worth living.

As if on cue, the doorbell rang, the sound echoing through the house. Letting out an exasperated, but happy sigh, Arthur climbed out of bed and began the walk downstairs. In the 3 minutes it took for him to get dressed, Alfred had started to repeatedly abuse the doorbell. Halfway down the stairs, Alfred had already started ringing the doorbell in the tune of the Star Spangled Banner.

Throwing open the door, Arthur regarded Alfred's appearance with a curious gaze. He was carrying an enormous duffel bag, bulging with the amount of things he had shoved in there. But even stranger, was Alfred's appearance. He was wearing his regular t-shirt and jeans, but the peculiar part was that he had cameras duct-taped all over his body. He also donned a helmet...one with a flashlight duct-taped on the front.

"Umm...do I even want to ask?" Arthur hesitantly asked.

"Come on, Artie, I have an awesome idea for what we can do today!" Finally taking in his appearance, Alfred exclaimed, "Well you can't go dressed like that! You have to be dressed so that you can run, or they'll catch you. And you should bring a flashlight and a helmet."

Raising an eyebrow, Arthur stared at Alfred like he had grown an extra head. Soundlessly, he turned around, walked back up to his room, and began changing. Sometimes, it was better to just not ask.

Arthur soon arrived at the foot of the stairs, he had on a thin cotton t-shirt, along with a pair of comfortable faded jeans. Worn out sneakers waited outside the door, and he walked out holding a silver helmet and a flashlight.

Excitedly, Alfred pumped his fists into the air. "Whoo hoo! Let's go, Artie! This is gonna be so much fun."

Skeptically, Arthur asked "Are you going to tell me what this "awesome idea" is, or are we just going in circles?"

"Calm down, Artie. We're almost there, and it's a surprise, so I can't tell you." Alfred grabbed Arthur's wrists and dragged him along.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**TIME SKIP~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

"You've got to be kidding me." Arthur deadpanned.

They had arrived in front of a dilapidated house. Weeds covered the untended lawn, and the "grass" was brown and dry. The cobblestone path leading to the door was shabbily done, and stones jutted out every which way. Unintended gaps left gaping holes in the work, exposing dry cracked brown earth. The house itself was in worse shape. Dust caked the windows, and potted plants had long died, the crumbly leaves littering the ground. The sizable house loomed far above, cracked windows casting an ominous aura. Shingles of the roof had long come undone and were lying on the ground in chunks. The door was a rusty red, the peeling paint revealing the oak underneath.

But in spite of all the filthiness, there was a beautiful elegant marble statue of a weeping angel in the center of the "garden." Her face was twisted with grief, and the morning dew made it look like shimmering drops of tears were running down her face. Parts of the statue had worn away, but time could not touch the pure emotion etched into the marble. The wings were drooping, glistening droplets of water running down it. This beauteous statue sat in the center of the "garden," marking a grave. Despite the beauty and simplicity, this house carried a foreboding feeling. Town locals had dubbed it haunted.

"Well? What d'ya think, Artie? We're gonna investigate this house. I heard a bunch of people say that it was haunted! Isn't that cool? I've even packed for it and everything."

Alfred then proceeded to empty out the duffel bag on the weed infested yard. Out fell: a thermometer, a first aid kit, duct tape, more flashlights, dozens of cameras, batteries, rope, a slingshot, bottles of water, granola bars, an array of rocks, measuring tape, and string.

"Here, put these cameras on your clothes, Artie, and make sure they're all on, just in case a ghost sneaks up behind you." Alfred remarked casually.

Dubiously, Arthur taped the flashlights to his body.

"What's all this stuff for, anyway?"

Alfred stared at him like it was obvious. "To help us find the ghosts of course. The thermometer is to tell if the temperature drops, the first aid kit is just in case we get hurt, the slingshot is a weapon, and the extra duct tape, flashlights, and batteries are to make sure we don't run out of supplies. The measuring tape tells us how far we went, and you never know when you need string!"

"And the rope?" Arthur questioned.

Sheepishly, Alfred rubbed at the back of his neck. "Umm... we kinda gotta use it to get inside."

The door, although peeling, was still solid, but the second story window was cracked and on the verge of shattering.

Somehow, Alfred had convinced Arthur to climb up to the second floor, carrying the rope.

"What am I supposed to do now?" Arthur shouted down, "The window may be cracked, but it's still made of glass!"

"Hold on!" Alfred replied. He flung a fist-sized rock at the window, and the tinkling sound of shattering glass filled the air.

Arthur gingerly maneuvered his way around the broken glass and stepped inside the abandoned house. Just stepping inside the room displaced the dust which had been settling there. Once inside, Arthur secured the rope around a rotting beam. Seconds later, Alfred's head popped up.

"Let's split up. You go downstairs and I'll stay up here. We'll meet up here in 30 minutes to report our findings."

Both boys turned the cameras on and began recording every move they made (literally). Arthur began walking downstairs, disturbing the dust that had settled long before. On the way down, he saw several portraits hung up on the peeling navy walls. One was an old styled painting of a young girl. Her bronze hair was tied up in pigtails using two pink ribbons, and she sat on a lone velvet armchair. She had on a faded blue hoop skirt, lined with frilly lace. Petite white bows dotted the skirt. She also donned a pale pink blouse with embroidered roses. Her dainty hands were folded in her lap, and she was sitting with her back as straight as a ruler.

Even in a painting, she looked uncomfortable. The plastered on smile didn't quite reach her eyes, and she looked awkward in the dress. In other words, she looked stifled in the flamboyant, almost tacky, outfit. Something about her eyes didn't seem right, the ice-blue irises appeared to follow him, but when Arthur turned back to examine the portrait, the eyes looked normal once more.

Dismissing the strange occurrence as sleep deprivation, Arthur continued exploring the bottom floor. Somehow ending up in the kitchen, Arthur decided to look in all the pantries to humor Alfred. Shoving open the cherry-wood doors, he was assaulted with a revolting smell; something like a mixture of decaying flesh and rust. Slamming the door closed, Arthur leaned against the nearest counter, breathing heavily. There was a loud thump from behind the door, scaring Arthur more than he would ever admit. Giving up on the whole "paranormal investigation," Arthur raced up the stairs towards the room Alfred was in.

Forcing the door open, Arthur burst into the room, only to find that Alfred was curled up on the floor in fetal position, slightly rocking back and forth.

"I-I heard a noise and panicked," Alfred stuttered.

"W-well, if y-you're so scared, then I suppose we should leave." Arthur scoffed.

Mutely nodding, Alfred began climbing down the ladder, Arthur following after. Scared out of their minds, both boys went to Alfred's house, as both of Arthur's parents were at work.

"W-we never speak of that again, do you you hear me Alfred?"

"Wait, can we see the tapes at least?"

It was then that Arthur noticed that his cameras were still recording, and had been recording everything. "Fine." Arthur relented. "But we're never going back."

"Agreed."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**BACK AT THE HOUSE~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**

The two cats meowed confusedly as the two humans ran away. Swaying their tails, the fluffy white cat with a scruff of brown fur and the Scottish Fold returned to the home they claimed as their home. Meowing, the white cat streaked towards the pantry door, nudging it open with a paw. Some of the food in there had fallen down, adding to the pile of fish and small dead animals the two cats had gathered. Dragging out one of the fish, the two felines contentedly ate the meal.

**A/N: I am so sorry for not updating earlier! But state exams and finals in school kept me from working on this story! But no matter how long it takes, I refuse to give up on my first story, so please be patient with me. I know it was a little rushed, but I wanted to use the little time I have. Fortunately, summer vacation is starting soon, and I'll have all the time in the world. And for those confused, the cats in the end were Americat and Iggycat. I love Catalia/Nekotalia, so I just had to include it. Reviews are greatly appreciated!**

**P.S. For USUK fans, I'd suggest looking up "Letter to You USUK" on YouTube. I was almost in tears...**


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